Coffee was mad expensive. Past Review
By Joie Rhon Cascayan (Brandeis University) - abroad from 08/21/2017 to 12/22/2017 with
CIEE: Seoul - Arts and Sciences
I learned about my ability to speak the language and I think going to Korea to learn Korean was worthwhile.
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
The classes I took were not very intense; however, they were very fun but were also a bit challenging. One thing that surprised me while studying there is the fact that all the classes at Yonsei were required to take attendance and it is a huge part of the grading system. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
The CIEE office in Yonsei was amazing. The provided us with a lot of information and chances to experience Korea through programs scattered throughout the whole semester. They took us to Busan for a weekend and they gave us money to spend while we were there. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
Housing was very safe and was very convenient. They have a 24 hour convenience store right within the dorm. They have very tight security and the dorm rooms were nice and cozy. I lived in SK global and the floors were separated by gender but everything else was great. |
| * Food: |
I love Korea food. Theres this strawberry cafe right below the dorms near the other convenience stores that sells amazing Korean food for no more than $5 dollars. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I was able to travel around Korea and try different food and experience different cultures. The program gave us a chance to experience the overall culture by integrating the program with sight seeing and such. Also the Seoul mates too us everywhere. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
Well iNext was assigned to us so I guess it was good. |
| * Safety: |
The city is so safe!!! People literally get drunk and sleep on the streets and police would wake them up and take them home. People are just well mannered and are very amicable. Ive never felt safer walking home from the club at 4 am in Korea. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
The program and the people within the program were very amicable and I made so many friends through the program. |
Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
If you're on a tight budget 15-20 dollars a day will be good. But I did try a $10 budget for a week once and was usually very tight to be honest. Korea in general is a pretty cheap but coffee was just mad expensive so be aware of that. Within a week, including weekends, I can easily spend $100 but I knew some people who survived with less. |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | 100-150 depending if I went out clubbing or not. |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | Find a cheap bar or get drunk on soju before going to bars. Also coffees are mad expensive. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | Yes |
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How much did the program encourage you to use the language?
0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language |
They required us to take a class in Korean. |
| How would you rate your language skills at the beginning of the program? | Intermediate |
| How would you rate your language skills at the end of the program? | Advanced |
| What was the highest level language course you had completed prior to departure? | Korean 40 at my home institution. |
| How many hours per day did you use the language? | |
| Do you have any tips/advice on the best ways to practice the language for future study abroad participants? | Talk to people and make friends with Koreans. They Will always take you out to drink and you guys will have the best conversation both in English and Korean. |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | About how expensive coffee was. |
